Elevator



(No Model.)

P. HINKLEL.

' ELEVATOR. Y No. 257,943. Patented May 16, 1882;.

N. PETERS. Phnlu-Lithngmpher. Washington. a. r;

UNITED STATES PATENT Tries.

PHILIP H INKLE, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

ELE'VATO R.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 257,943, dated May 16, 1882.

' given freight or passenger elevator without increasing the working power of the engine or motor that drives it; and it consists in the application of an overbalance counter-weight for overbalancing the weight of the cage, and in the interposition between said counter-weight and the cage of a self-actin g brake, which prevents the superior weight of the counter-balance from being transmitted to the cage and engine-power when the engine and cage are standing at rest. The self-actin g brake which I use is a worm-wheel and worm, which also serves as a gearing for transmitting the power of the engine or motor to the cage and counter weight, all as hereinafter more fully described. Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side view. Fig. 2 is a plan view. Let'A represent the cage, which is suspended in the usual way from the hoisting-drum B by means of the rope G, which passes up over pulleys cl d, as shown. A rope, E, is also secured to the opposite side of the drum B, and passes up over a pulley, f, and to the opposite end of this rope the counter-weight G is suspended. The drum B is secured upon a horizontal shaft, h, which is properly supported in bearings, and to this shaft is also secured a worm-wheel, I. A transverse worm or screwshaft, J is mounted in bearings, either below or above the worm-wheel, at right angles to the shaft h, so as to engage with the worm wheel I, and to this shaft the power of the engine or other motor employed is applied. It will now be seen that this worm-wheel and worm serve two purposes: first, as a gearing for transmitting the motion and power from the shaft J to theshaft h and drum B, and, secondly, as a self-acting brake, which acts instantly when the rotation of the worm-shaft ceases and prevents the superior weight of the counter-weight from reacting against the Application filed September 27, 1881. (No model.)

again the power of the engine is still required to overcome the superior weight of the counter-weight on the opposite side, thus producin g a uniform strain upon the engine without overstraining it. 7 Suppose, for instance, that the cage "weighs two hundred pounds and the counter-weight four hundred pounds, and sup? pose that the worm can bear with safety a load of twohundred pounds,Ican then raisefourhundred pounds in the cage, besides the weight of the cage itself, and the engine will have only two hundred pounds to lift when the cage is raised, and the same amount when the cage is lowered, and the worm-gears will at no time be subjected to a strain of more than two hundred pounds, whereas with a simple balanceweight, such as has heretofore been used, no more than the weight of the cage could be used as a counter-balance without having it react to lift the cage as soon as the application of power to the driving-shaft ceased. In this latter case I would be able to raise a weight of only two hundred pounds on the cage. It is therefore evident that I am able by using my overbalance counter-weight to raise twice the amount of weight on a certain size machine as heretofore, or, in other; words, it enables me to do the same amount of work with an engine of half the capacity as has been heretofore required.

In case it is desired to raise a load of more than ordinary weight, additional Weight can be applied to the overbalance to any desired extent within thelimits of strength of the rope and mechanism.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In an elevator, the combination, with the hoisting-drum B, of the cage A and rope 0 thereof attached to one side of the drum B, and

the overbalance-weight G and ropeE thereof Worm-wheel I, mounted on the same shaft with attached to the opposite side of the drum B, B, as set forth. 10 substantially as set forth. In witness whereof I have hereunto set my 2. The combination, with the drum B and hand and seal. 5 ropes O and E, attached to the opposite sides PHILIP HINKLE. [L. S.]

thereof and suspending the cage and overbal- Attest: mice-weight, respectively, of the power-shaft J, WM. F. CLARK,

provided With the worm, as described, and the J NO. H. MILLER. 

